Automobile-tire.



E. G. MUDILL.

AUTOMOBILE TIRE.

APPLIGATION FILED DEG. 1s, 1912.

1,091,005. 'Patented Mar. 24, 19M

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

@@Mcaz E. G. MUDILL.

AUTOMOBILE TIRE.

- APPLICATION FILED DEG.18, 1912. 1,091,005. v Patented Mar. 24, 1914 Lj/ 5 2 SHEETS-SHEBT 2.

ELIIHU G. MOBILI', OF SPARTA, ILLINOIS.

AUTOMOBILE-TIRE.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 24, 1914.

Application :tiled December 18, 1912. Serial No. 737.461.

Improvements in Automobile-Tires, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to vehicle tires, and

l particularly to tires designed for use upon the wheels of automobiles, an obje'ctbeing to provide a tire of this character which may be readily applied to or removed from the rim.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tire including an' elastic inner tube, and an outer' casing, or shoe including a tread portion constructed substantially of A some tough metal and attaching portions adapted to be secured to the rim ot the wheel and which are detachably secured to the said shoe, in order that the tread portion of the shoe may be replaced by a new tread portion when it has become worn, thus permitting the indefinite use of the attaching portions, as they are subjected to very little wear.

Another object is to provide a tire of this character wherein the tread portion -of the shoe is composed of a metallic mesh, which will be very durable,will prevent uncture of the inner tube and will engage t e pavement or ground firmly so as to prevent skid- Vding of the machine when passing over slippery surfaces.

The invention consists in the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference'being had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a fragmentary side elevation of a wheel having a tire constructed in accord-y ance with the preferred form of the invention attached thereto, the said tire being broken away to show the metallic tread portion of the shoe; Fig. 2 is a transverse sectionalyiew on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing an inflated inner tube employed therewith; Fig. 3 is a ragmentary side elevation of one of the attaching members; Fi 4 is a longitudinal sectional view throng a portion of one of the attaching members showing the manner of connecting the tread portion of the shoe thereto; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of one of the movable locking elements carried by each attaching member; Fig. 6 is a detail transverse sectional view through a wheel rim, and a tire atemployed therewith.

orally extending bolt members 18 which tached thereto having a modified form ofv shoe tread; and, Fig. 7 is a similar view showlng the preferred form of shoe tread, a modified form of inner tube being shown as Referring to the drawings, and in part1cular to Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive, it will be seen that I have provided a tire which inf cludes, essentially, the inner tube 1, and the outer casing, or shoe 2, which latter includes the tread portion 3 and a pair of attaching portions 4 adapted to be mounted upon the wheel rim 5 of ordinaryl well known construction, so Aas to provide means for detachably securing the tread portion to the said rim.

The tread portion of the shoe is constructed of a wire mesh of tough, durable metal, which may be /in the form of open links 6, as shown in he drawings, or it may be woven, if it proves desirable. This tread of mail is preferably embedded within rubber,

or some such elastic material, as shown at 7.

An annular wire 8 is embraced by the linksl'go nular attaching members 11. These attachf ing members 11 are adapted to be clamped upon the rim 5 in spaced relation to each other with ltheir side flanges 12 in engagement with the securing flanges 13 of the rim, by means of the clamping bolt members 14 which are adjustably mounted within the apertured, laterally projecting lu s"`15 providedl upon the meeting ends o the said members. Each attachlng member 11 is provided in its louter side face with a circumferentially extending groove 16 communicatin with all of the radiating slots 10 therein. n annular locking element 17, shown particularly in Fig. 5, is mounted upon the outer side face of each attaching member 11 for limited circumferential movement, and is disposed inwardly with respect to the groove 16 in the said member. Each locking element is secured to the corresponding attaching member by means of the latextendoutwardly from each attaching member throughthe limiting slots 19 in the locking element. These bolts are intended to serve as means for limiting the circumferential rmovement of the locking elements and further as means for detachably securing the said elements to the attaching members, the said bolt members being provided with threaded nuts 20. Each locking element is provided on its outer periphery with a plurality of locking fingers 21, each including a laterally projecting portion 22 extending into the groove 16 in the corresponding attaching member, and an yactive portion 23 extending parallel to the element body' and movable within said groove for engagement within one of the attaching links 9, when the latter is receive-d Within an adjacent slot 10.

It will thus beseenthat, after the tread portion of the shoe is placed in position withV `its attaching links 9 disposed within the proper slots Y10 in the attaching members,

. this being accomplished readily by lateral movement alone of the said tread portion, the tread portion may be effectively secured to the attaching members by moving `the locking elements until the active portions 23 of their locking fingers 21 engage within the said links 9. Then the nuts 20 may be 4tightened so as to prevent the locking elements from moving accidentally into inoperative position.

The inner tube when em loyed` in a tire of this construction may be mliated after the tread portion of the shoe is secured in position. In order to prevent this inner tube from becoming dangerously worn as would occur upon contact of the same with the outer edges of the attaching members, which are non-yieldable, I have provided a protective lining 24 of tough fabric, leather, or like material, which may include a number of layers, as the occasion demands.

In constructing a tire of this character for use upon a heavy vehicle such as a motor truck, the metallic mesh may be constructed of heavy links, and an inner lining for use in connection with such a heavy tread should be constructed of a number of layers of leather. For lighter vehicles the .tread mesh may be formed of lighter and more closely woven links, the protective lining thereforl being constructed of canvas, or some such light, and yet durable fabric. It is to beunderstood that these expedients of construction are to be determined in view of the requirements of usage, and are not departures from the general sco e of the invention.

In Fig. 6 I have shownv the metallic mesh comprising the tread portion of theA shoe exposed by the omission of the elastic 'material m which it is embedded in the preferred form ofthe invention. Such a modified construction might 4prove desirable when the ltire is to be used upon slippery streets, especially in winter time, when they are covered with sleet or ice, as such a tread surface i would obtain a more effective purchase upon such slippery surfaces over which the machine passes. This would prevent to a' considerable degree the usual skidding when turning sharp corners, or other such occurrences, which are a common source of annoyance to drivers of motor vehicles.

In Fig. 7,' I have disclosed amodified form of inner tube, which will be very inexpensive to manufacture and yet will afford the desired resiliency and cushioning effect, when employed in connection with a tire shoe of the construction described. This inner tube is constructed of a gelatinous substance, Asuch as that of which printers rolls are formed. In providing my improved tire shoe With an inner tube of this nature, the gelatinous material, which is initially of'such a consistency that it will flow, is v poured into the inner lining of the shoe which'forms a mold for the same. After r this material has become hardened, it will present a non-puncturable tube, which will e slight frictional engagetube, and thus, it may prove desirable to i dispense with the protective lining of the shoe, when using a solid inner tube of elastic composition as Just described.

What I.claim is:

l. In a tire of the class described, a tire shoe adapted to be mounted u on a rim and including a flexible tread portlon of metallic mesh, annular members attached to the side edges of the mesh, a pair of annular attaching members adapted to'be mounted upon the rim and having lateral ianges adapted for engagement with the rim ianges, each attaching member being disposed adjacent to and inwardly of one of the said annular members of the tire tread, a plurality of attaching links lformed upon` each annular member of the tread so as to project radially with respect thereto, a locking element mounted upon each attaching member for circumferential movement with respect thereto, and a plurality of fingers provided upon each locking element having circumferentially extending portions ada ted for engagement within the attaching 1in s of the adjacent annular member of the tread.

2. In a tire of the class described, a tire shoe adapted to be mounted upon a rim and including a flexible tread portion of metallic mesh, annular members attached to the side edges of the mesh, a pair of annular attaching members adapted to be mounted upon the rim and having lateral flanges adapted for engagement with the r1m anges, each attachn member being dis; posed adjacentl to an inwardly of one ,of the said annular members of the tire tread, a plurality of vattaching links formed upon each annular member of the tread so as to project radially with respect thereto, a locking element mounted upon each attaching member for circumferential movement with respect thereto, a plurality of fingers pro-l vided upon each locking element having cir- 15 cumferentially extending portions adapted for engagement within the attaching llnks of the adJacent annular member of the tread, and means for limiting the circumferentiall movement ofthe locking element upon the 20 corresponding attachin member.

In testimony whereo I aiiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ELLIHU G. MCDILL.

Witnesses:

F. B. GARDNER, Roar. J. MAXWELL, 

